Consumer protection refers to the laws designed to aid retail consumers of goods and services that have been improperly manufactured, delivered, performed, handled, or described. Such laws provide the retail consumer with additional protections and remedies not generally provided to merchants and others who engage in business transactions, on the premise that the consumers do not enjoy a sufficient bargaining position with respect to the businessmen with whom they deal and therefore should not be strictly limited by the legal rules that govern recovery for damages among businessmen. The overarching goal is to protect individuals and the interest of the public in general from unfair and misleading activity in business and commerce (such as false advertising and deceptive trade practices) and scams perpetrated by criminals (such as identity theft and pyramid schemes) that harm a substantial number of consumers.
Edgewater is a borough located along the Hudson River in Bergen County, New Jersey. Its history has featured the founding of the first colony in Bergen County, contribution to the Revolutionary War, a period as a "sleepy, pastoral little town" with resort hotels in the 1800s; industrialization in the early 19th century and transition to residential community in the late 19th century. As of the 2007 Census estimate, the borough had a population of 9,582. Edgewater was originally formed on December 7, 1894, from portions of Ridgefield Township as the Borough of Undercliff, at the height of the "Boroughitis" phenomenon then sweeping through Bergen County. The name was changed to Edgewater on November 8, 1899.